Product Description

The moment of the beginning of time is one of science's Holy Grails, pursued by devotees and obsessives across the ages. Few were more committed than Bishop James Ussher who lost his sight in his 50 year quest, laboriously outlined in his 2000 Latin pages of Annals - a chronology of all known history - that is now famous only for one spectacularly inaccurate date: 4004BC, the creation of the world. Theology failed Ussher, just as it thwarted Theophilus of Antioch and many others before him. Geology was next to fail the test of time: the Comte de Buffon, working out the rate at which the earth was supposed to have cooled came up with age of 74,832 years even though he suspected this was far too little. Biology had a go in the 18th century in the hands of Johann Scheuchzer, who alleged that a fossil he had found was of a man at the time of Noah's flood; regrettably what he had was a large salamander. And so science inched forward via Darwinism, thermodynamics and radioactivity - each new discovery being applied to the enduring mystery: when had time begun.

Product Details

• Amazon Sales Rank: #1122601 in Books
• Published on: 2001-04-17
• Original language: English
• Binding: Hardcover
• 288 pages

About the Author
Martin Gorst is a writer and director of science documentaries on both sides of the Atlantic, including for the BBC and Channel 4.

Customer Reviews

Thoroughly good read
An excellent account of a fascinating subject - not enough has been written on time, but Gorst provides an enjoyable account of different attempts to measure the age of everything: to begin with the earth (when that was all we knew) and then on to the galaxy and the universe, with the newest results from Hubble included.

Gorst skips over the technicalities of the various experiments performed a little too easily at times, but is extremely good on running the reader through extensive historical eras and building up knowledge step by step. You come away from the book unwillingly, and with a much greater awareness of the contingency of knowledge.

Make the time for a ripping good read
Ever wonder exactly how Bishop Ussher worked out that earth was created at 6 pm on the 22 October, 4004 BC? Ever wondered how this came to be proved wrong? Ever wondered how clever scientists came to work out the real age of the earth? Want to know when the universe began? Then this book is for you. It's wonderful. Superbly written, fascinating material, with technical concepts clearly explained, it's just wonderful.